October 12, 2010

Ukraine drops anti-dumping case against US poultry

The Ukrainian Ministry of Economy has accepted a request from local poultry industry to withdraw its dumping petition against the US chicken industry.

According to official reports, the ministry announced that it has approved a request by Mironovskiy Hilboproduct (MHP)-a major chicken producer in Ukraine and the main petitioner of the dumping allegation-to rescind the Ukrainian industry's dumping petition.

In early 2009, MHP filed the dumping petition, alleging that the Ukrainian industry had suffered economic injury from imports of US chicken. Based on the petition, the Ministry of Economy launched an anti-dumping investigation against the US chicken industry. The Brazilian chicken industry was also included in the investigation.

In its petition, the Ukrainian industry argued that US and Brazilian imports caused a glut of chicken on the market, which drove down prices. The USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC) argued that imports of US chicken parts into Ukraine do not compete directly with fresh domestic product, and that rendering a decision in favor of the Ukrainian industry would have a negative impact on local consumers by increasing chicken prices.

The decision by the Ukrainian Ministry of Economy in favour of the US and Brazil should send a strong signal to other countries that pursuing an anti-dumping case against a supplying country may not be the best approach to take to address their concerns.